


And It's Warm on the Outside

by Schiffsgefangnis



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Kissing, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-07
Updated: 2014-05-07
Packaged: 2018-01-23 22:14:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1581359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Schiffsgefangnis/pseuds/Schiffsgefangnis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bertholdt hasn't shared physical contact with anyone in a while, so he hires a professional cuddler. The appointment goes in a direction he didn't anticipate.</p>
            </blockquote>





	And It's Warm on the Outside

In all of his uneventful, lackluster life, Bertholdt never pictured himself picking up the phone and dialing in the number of a man named Reiner Braun, who works as a professional cuddler. Bertholdt had no idea such a thing existed, but after coming across an article about this new... profession, he was vaguely intrigued at first.

But over time, that article repeatedly wiggled its way back to the front of his thoughts, coaxing him to pick up the phone and dial the number presented in the article. He hasn't had human contact in a while, which is pretty pathetic to admit (but true), and sometimes he got an intense urge to hold or to be held. He was an affectionate person after all, even if he was subtle about it. Maybe if his closest friend Annie wasn't so opposed to physical touch then he wouldn't have to actually spend money to cuddle with someone. 

Staring down at his phone as it rang, Bertholdt swallows thickly and then brings it up to his ear. On the third ring, it picks up. A masculine voice greets him with a cheerful hello and then states the business, the one he called for. Already beginning to feel an uncomfortable nervous sweat break out over his back, Bertholdt shakily exhales before speaking.

“H-hello. Is this R-Reiner Braun?” 

He rubs at his clammy forehead, mentally berating himself for stuttering like an idiot. His olive green eyes flicker anxiously between his laptop screen and the keyboard. When the man speaks again, he sounds slightly amused.

“Yes, it is. How can I help you?”

Bertholdt lowers his hand to bite at a fingertip, eyes falling, hesitating. Then he exhales and drops his hand.

“I would like to hire you for your, um, services..”

The soft chuckle that follows makes him blush hotly. 

“It will be fifty an hour. If that sounds good to you, I'll need your address and your name.”

Bertholdt blinks a few times, trying to catch up. He knew it was fifty dollars based on the listing on the article, and he was kind of hesitant on that part, but he felt he deserved it. In fact, hearing Reiner's voice only convinces him to spend that fifty dollars for an hour of cuddling with this man. Bertholdt gives Reiner his address and his name with a soft voice, face growing progressively warmer.

“Alright,” Reiner begins, Bertholdt hearing the distant sound of pencil scratching against paper. “And when would you like me to arrive?”

“Now,” Bertholdt blurts before he can stop himself, the concept of Reiner coming here soon and spooning him making him slip up with a nervous eagerness. Bertholdt's blush flares up with consequence. “I-I mean if you're not preoccupied right now or anything... if it's okay.” 

There was a pause, Bertholdt only hearing Reiner's light breathing, before Reiner makes that soft laugh again, Bertholdt's heart leaping at the sound.

“Alright. I'll see you soon then, Bertholdt.”

“Okay. See you soon, Reiner.”

Then Reiner hangs up. Bertholdt lowers his phone from his ear and stares at it for a moment. He sighs and grows lax against his pillows, tilting his head back to gaze up at the ceiling.

After a minute of processing he was actually going to cuddle with a complete stranger very soon, he sets his laptop aside (sliding his phone into his pants pocket in case Reiner calls for whatever reason) and then hops off his bed to begin tidying up.

 

For the next twenty minutes, he sorts his messy pile of books back onto the shelves, puts away his folders of haphazard manuscripts, and makes his queen sized bed. After entirely scrubbing down the toilet in his bathroom (because Reiner may have to use it in-between the cuddling), he washes his hands, and hurries into the sitting room. Bertholdt pauses, turns on his heels, and returns to the bathroom. 

While blushing, Bertholdt rigorously brushes his teeth and tongue. Then he combs his hair and styles it for the second time since he talked to Reiner.

At twenty-five minutes, he's sitting in one of the leather arm chairs in his sitting room, long legs crossed with his foot jiggling anxiously. One of his arms remains draped across an arm rest, his other hand is raised for him to bite nervously at his fingertips, a habit of his. His eyes stay fixed intently on the door. 

Thirty minutes pass since the call, and his door is greeted with a few strong knocks. Startled, he nearly jumps out of his skin, and the chair. He almost dives for the door, but that would make it seem like he was waiting right there, so he waits about six seconds before stepping up. Wetting his lips with a sweep of his tongue, Bertholdt unlocks it and pulls it open. He sees a blonde, buff man standing there. A bright, blinding grin spreads over the man's lips when he glances up and down over Bertholdt.

“Hey. You called for me?”

Bertholdt stares at him for a long, _long_ few seconds before he speaks, “U-uh.” His voice cracks unflatteringly, so he clears it and tries again. “Yes... Reiner?”

The blond man nods with that teeth-revealing grin still stretched over his lips, his honey eyes fixed on him. It makes Bertholdt begin to sweat with nervousness. Blushing, Bertholdt steps aside and gestures into his apartment with an awkward wave of his hand. Reiner gives him a softer smile and then paces in past him. 

Quietly shutting and locking the door behind him, Bertholdt turns to face the blond. Reiner was glancing around the place. Bertholdt takes the chance to glance over his body. He seemed...pretty buff. Muscular. Broad shoulders, thick thighs, and rounded biceps. Bertholdt licks his lips. Reiner was wearing casual clothing. A plaid button-up shirt, with its sleeves pushed up to his elbows. It was left unbuttoned to reveal a plain black shirt underneath. And jeans. Bertholdt looks up when Reiner glances to him. Bertholdt clears his throat again, fingers fidgeting in front of himself.

“Do you want a drink?”

Reiner smiles and rubs at the back of his neck, other hand perched on his hip.

“Yeah, just water is fine though. Don't need alcohol to loosen me up for cuddling.”

With a short nod and a tightening of his soft frown, Bertholdt drops his hands and strides into the kitchen. He doesn't even have any alcohol in his place, being a recovering alcoholic and all. Distantly, he hears Reiner move about and then take a squeaky seat on the leather arm chair he was previously sitting on. Bertholdt grabs two water bottles from his fridge after a moment of hesitation, and then turns to pace back out to the sitting room.

Reiner thanks him when he hands him the water bottle. Sitting down on the opposite arm chair with a heavy exhale, Bertholdt uncaps his quietly, watching Reiner. The blond chugs half of it down in one go. Bertholdt stares as he takes a sip of his. Reiner lets out a refreshed gasp and then closes his water bottle.

They sit there in silence for a total of five seconds before Reiner blatantly asks, “So where shall this cuddling commence?” Bertholdt was mid-drink, his eyebrows lifting at the right-down-to-it question. He lowers the bottle from his mouth and blushes. 

“Um... I was thinking a bed would be more suitable than a narrow couch..”

Reiner nods and grins in agreement, and then gestures to the hallway, cocking a thin eyebrow. He sets his water bottle on the coffee table. Bertholdt does the same and then uncrosses his long legs and stands, giving a tight smile as he passes the other to begin down the hallway. Hearing Reiner follow after him has Bertholdt's heart rate pick up. He can't believe this is happening, really. Blushing already, Bertholdt enters his bedroom and stops at the side of the made bed. Reiner only glances over his bedroom once, which was somewhat plain actually, and then boldly climbs onto the bed after looking up at Bertholdt.

Swallowing down the rock in his throat, Bertholdt shifts foot to foot before he raises a knee to set it on the bed, nervously setting his hands on the plush comforter. Reiner plops back on the pillows with a sigh and then opens his muscular arms wide, giving Bertholdt this insufferable smirk. Blushing darkly, Bertholdt gets onto the bed with a timidness, slinking closer to the blond. He never was good at these things, despite being affectionate and whatnot. 

When he finally gets the urge to lower himself and slide into Reiner's arms, he can barely handle it based on his racing heart and nervous sweat. He nearly calls it off out of an impulse to get back into his comfort zone. But when Reiner tightens his arms around him and tugs him close, pretty much suffocating him in his prominent pectoral muscles, Bertholdt grows lax and makes a muffled noise that Reiner laughs softly at. He thinks this is okay. Actually, it's pretty dang nice. Bertholdt sighs wistfully into Reiner's chest. Then a moment later Reiner manually turns him over (with his big strong hands), and then slides an arm around Bertholdt's waist, tugging him back to properly spoon.

Bertholdt, staring out at the lamp across from him with wide eyes, feels Reiner exhale deeply against the back of his neck, and then snuggle closer. Bertholdt blushes, eyes widening. He didn't think Reiner would be so enthusiastic to cuddle with a stranger...

“C-c-can you loosen your hold... a little bit...” Bertholdt sputters, feeling it harder to breath with how tight Reiner's holding him. Reiner apologizes quickly and looses his arm so it just remains draped over Bertholdt's waist. Bertholdt sucks in a breath and thanks him softly. Then he situates himself into a comfortable position and leans back into Reiner. It was warm.

Five minutes pass of quiet breathing and the occasional shifting, and then Bertholdt feels Reiner nonchalantly rest his hand flatly on Bertholdt's clothed belly. This was..a bit too intimate even for cuddling. Bertholdt fidgets in his hold, eyes darting around in front of him as he nervously debates whether he should just go along with it or not. Reiner doesn't go farther than that, just holding him around the waist and keeping a hand on his stomach. Bertholdt eventually stops and wills himself to relax.

Within a short period of time, Bertholdt's eyelids begin to grow heavy. It's so comfortable and warm. He's thinking this was definitely worth the fifty dollars and it's only been about twenty minutes. Reiner shifts against his back once and then exhales heavily, sounding more like a sigh of comfort rather than impatience. Bertholdt's eyelids weakly drift open at the movement and then slide close again. Reiner's nose brushes very lightly against the back of his neck, the last thing Bertholdt registers before he falls asleep.

 

When he's woken up by a gentle shake to the shoulder, Bertholdt peels his eyelids open to a dimly lit room. He's greeted with the sight of Reiner leaning over him. Bertholdt was laying flat on his back with his limbs strewn across the bed in awkward angles. Rapidly becoming embarrassed, he pulls his limbs in and sits up against the headboard, face flushing a dark pink. He hates his habit of moving a lot in his sleep. He prays he didn't smack Reiner in his sleep. He isn't even sure how long he's _been_ asleep.

A soft smile spreads over Reiner's lips. Bertholdt stares over at his face, and then at his strong jaw, and then his perfect hair, and then settles his gaze on his golden eyes that warm his core for some reason. Reiner was sitting there with his legs crossed casually, arm resting in his lap. He pulls his hand back when Bertholdt sits up and sets it on his knee instead. 

“You sure move a lot in your sleep.”

Bertholdt brings his knees up and wraps his arms around his shins in a way of comfort. Because he definitely feels uncomfortable right now. And embarrassed. He nervously licks his lips and then nods.

“I...sorry. If it was um, a problem. I didn't mean to fall asleep like that..”

Reiner laughs with good nature and then replies, “Nah, it was okay. I was a little surprised when you flung your arm over your head though. That's when I kinda realized you fell asleep, aha.” Bertholdt blushes and hides his face behind his knees. He was a grown-ass man, why does he always have the habit of hiding? Bertholdt lifts his head at that thought, but keeps his eyes downcast, too embarrassed to meet his gaze.

“So, is my hour over?” Bertholdt asks softly, flicking his eyes briefly up to Reiner's. He drops them to Reiner's lap, staring at his hands.

“Yeah, a bit over actually. I let you sleep for a little bit. You did look tired beforehand, thought you could use a nap. But I don't expect you to pay for that extra time.”

Lifting his gaze to Reiner's, he stares at him, a little baffled. Reiner stayed here the entire time? Bertholdt glances at the clock. His eyes widen when he realizes Reiner has been here for about two and a half hours. Turning back to Reiner, he asks, “Why didn't you just wake me up?”

Reiner smiles. 

“It wasn't unpleasant for me to hold you longer than what you're paying for. Plus I have no other appointments so I thought I could stick around. Hope it isn't a problem.”

Bertholdt blinks a few times, processes it, and then blushes all over again. He looks down from Reiner's eyes, and fidgets with a loose thread in the comforter. They sit in silence for a moment or two before Bertholdt hears Reiner shift on the bed and clear his throat.

Peeking up at him, Bertholdt watches as he slides closer to him on the bed, before reaching out. Tensing up entirely, Bertholdt stares at him widely when Reiner cups his cheek.

Reiner's cheeks were tinted a warm red as well. 

“Can.. I kiss you? I mean.. I'm assuming you're gay cause you did.. hire a guy.”

He looks flustered after asking this. Bertholdt thinks it's kinda cute. He blinks a few times again, not really understanding what was going on, but nods anyways, without really considering it. He had wanted to kiss him since he opened the door, so he wasn't _opposed_ to it.

When Reiner shifts closer, close enough for Bertholdt to smell the laundry detergent from his clothes, Bertholdt's face feels insanely warm. He licks his lips, glad that he thought to brush his teeth before this. 

Reiner searches in his eyes as he leans in, his warm hand still holding Bertholdt's cheek. Bertholdt stares at him even when he presses his dry lips to Bertholdt's. Bertholdt begins to softly return the kiss, closing his eyes. Bertholdt keeps his knees up, but his arms lay by his sides, hands nervously fiddling with the blanket under them. Of course, it wasn't heated or anything. They were still strangers so it wasn't too intimate. Just a few overlapping kisses of their mouths before Reiner pulls away. 

They look into each other's eyes for a moment and then Reiner sits back, away from him. He slides his hand away as well. Reiner laughs lightly, and rubs at the back of his neck.

“That... that was,” Reiner begins in a breathless voice, golden eyes meekly shifting between Bertholdt's and the navy blue comforter. Bertholdt gives a timid smile. Reiner drops his hand from his neck and fixes his gaze on Bertholdt's.

“Want my number?”

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, it is a real profession.
> 
> esidisi-kars.tumblr.com


End file.
